My resolutions for 2012

Pray for forgiveness.

Ease up on yourself.

Remember that regrets are futile.

Face your shortcomings.

Emphasize what you can do now.

Change the flaws you can, accept those you can’t.

Take setbacks with a sense of perspective.

In all things, be grateful for love and friendship.

Obey the Golden Rule.

Never let envy guide your thoughts or actions.

Note that the first letters spell a word.

Best wishes to you all for the coming year.

Leftover Christmas Wrapping paper

Christmas is over, and you're stuck with 8 rolls of snowflake and candy cane wrapping paper because you bought the 10 roll jumbo pack that was supposed to save you a lot of money.  Now you have three rolls left and you don't want to save them for next year…because people do remember wrapping paper patterns!

Here are a few ideas to put that paper to good use from getgreeliving

Line Your Dresser Drawers with Leftover Paper

Drawer liners do wonders to protect your clothing. Believe it or not, wrapping paper makes great drawer liners. Cut pieces of wrapping paper to fit the bottom of your dresser drawers. Attach the paper with double-stick tape. Voila! Homemade drawer liners that are environmentally friendly because they are made of paper that didn’t end up in the landfill and they didn’t cost you a penny!

 Use Leftover Paper to Protect Fragile Ornaments

When the holidays are over and you have to pack up the ornaments and other Christmas decorations, use scraps of leftover wrapping paper to protect the ones that are fragile. As an added bonus, you’ll be greeted with holiday cheer when you unwrap them next year! This is also a great way to protect ornaments and other fragile items when moving.

Shred Leftover Paper

Shred any leftover paper and use it in place of packing peanuts to protect valuables when you ship them. The shredded paper can also be used as a fun alternative to tissue paper when you use gift bags. It also makes a great bed for your kids’ Easter baskets!

Homemade Holiday Coasters by Martha Stewart

And finally...Clean the Windows with Paper

Like newspaper, wrapping paper is great for cleaning windows and leaving them streak-free – use it instead of paper towels or a cloth. (Avoid using the shiny/plastic stuff though.)

What do you do with your leftover wrapping paper?

 Marin Thomas

A Rodeo Man's Promise (Dec 2011)

Arizona Cowboy (Feb 2012)

www.marinthomas.com

All My Heroes are Cowboys

Merry Christmas to You and Yours

May your home be filled with love and happiness, today and always.

With warmest wishes from
          the authors of Harlequin American Romance

'Twas the night before Christmas...

Actually it's still the morning of the night before Christmas, my home is bustling with holiday preparations, and I love it! In a couple of hours we'll decorate the tree and then it'll officially be Christmas.

My whole family will be here and we usually have an informal buffet supper on Christmas Eve, but tonight I'm serving a four-course sit-down dinner—butternut squash soup, apple-pomegranate salad, boeuf bourguignon a la Julia Child, and lemon custard for dessert. Tomorrow, of course, I'll do the more traditional roast turkey with all the trimmings. For me, a Christmas filled with family and food is the best present of all, and I wish the same for you. Let's all have at least as much fun as these goats...

Until next time,
Lee
The Christmas Secret (Nov. '11)
The Daddy Project (working title, TBA)
Daddy, Unexpectedly (working title, TBA)
Lee's website
Lee's Facebook page

Holiday Wishes

This year I'm on deadline during the holidays, which means the tree is half-trimmed, only a few packages have been wrapped, and the cookies may not get baked at all. Oh, well. I can't regret any of that, when I'm so happily immersed in the lives of my characters. (Besides, fewer goodies around the house means we'll get a jump on our New Year's diet resolutions!)

Still, for your sake, I hope your preparations are moving along much better than mine are. LOL

One not-to-be-missed event is writing my Harlequin American Romance Authors blog entry.

My December appearance here never gets old—to me, anyway (smile)—even though I say some of the same things from year to year. How could I not? A blog post almost smack in the middle of December requires some very specific messages, don't you think?

The first is a huge thank you for your support of my books and for your letters and e-mails and social media posts throughout the year.

I look forward to staying in touch, both here at the blog and "out there" in cyber space.

Meanwhile, no matter what special days you celebrate, I wish you a safe, happy, and healthy holiday season.

See you next year!


All my best to you,

Barbara

~~~~~~

Barbara White Daille
THE RODEO MAN'S DAUGHTER (February 2012)
http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com
http://www.facebook.com/barbarawhitedaille https://twitter.com/BarbaraWDaille

Christmas Party Games

If you’re hosting family and friends at your house this Christmas holiday you can add to the fun with party games.  Just think how much more fun these games will be if you spike the eggnog!

Party ideas from Wryte Stuff

 Kiss it Relay: Place a large bowl of Hersey's kisses on a table. Divide your group into two teams and have them line up around 10-15 feet away from the table. Give the first people in the row mittens that are slightly larger than they would ever need. On the mark of "Go", the first player of each team runs to the table (with their mittens on), takes a Hershey's kiss out from the bowl and tries unwrapping it with the large mittens. After they unwrap it they have to run down and pop it into the next person's mouth. The next person takes the mittens and runs to the bowl to do the same.

Reindeer Antlers: Divide your group into teams of two to four people. Give each group a pair of pantyhose. Give each team eight balloons. Then, when "Go" is said, the race starts, and the teams start blowing up the balloons and stuffing them into the pantyhose. Once all the balloons are stuffed inside the pantyhose, a team member wears the "reindeer antlers" and the team yells "Rudolph" when finished. The first team to finish is the winning team.

Snowball Toss: Divide the group into teams each team forms a line. Place a 2 taped markers on the floor a few feet from the teams. Give each team a bag of marshmallows (large, not the mini size). The first team member in line stands behind the tape marker. On "Go" the 2nd one in line takes a turn trying to "catch" a marshmallow in their mouth. Once a team member catches a marshmallow, they get out of line. The team that finishes their line first wins.

Do you have a favorite Christmas game you play at your holiday parties?

Marin Thomas

A Rodeo Man's Promise (Dec 2011)

Arizona Cowboy (Feb 2012)

www.marinthomas.com

All My Heroes are Cowboys

To Grinch or Not to Grinch...

…that is the question.

My hubby worked in retail for many years and to say he was a Grinch is an understatement. He was in a district position which required him to be at various stores during the day so between the traffic and the craziness that surrounds malls during December, he was not amused. Add to that all the Christmas music that malls begin playing around, hmm, October, and Christmas was a dreaded event. If I put on one of my many, many Christmas CD’s, he grimaced and groaned in true Grinch form.

But the past couple years he’s been in a different career and I love the change in his mood. I love Christmas so it’s refreshing that he’s now getting into the spirit of the holiday. He even decorated the outside of the house without too much grimacing. But when I came home from a weekend trip, I had to laugh. In a special salute to his favorite Christmas show, he’d decorated my palm tree in true Whoville fashion. He was quite impressed with his handy work. But if he pulls out his Scooge shirt, we’re going to war.

Anybody else have a Grinch in the family or a good Grinch story to share?

Having Myself a Very Weird Little Christmas!!

Christmas Eve 2010 

Christmas this year in the Altom home is following a little closer to fiction than I'd like.  Similar to the characters of last story in my Buckhorn Ranch series, A Baby in His Stocking, our holiday will be much different than it has ever been before. 

Hannah is still dating her New Jersey hockey player.  We talked about maybe spending the holiday on the beach in Gulf Shores, taking Antonio with us, but as he's been away from his family for months, playing with a Minnesota team, he's of course spending the holidays in New Jersey.  Here's where things get dicey.  He invited Hannah to spend the holiday with him.  Now that Hannah's not going to be here for Christmas, my parents have decided they're not coming, either.  Suddenly, our typical houseful of fun has dwindled to Hubby, me and our sons.

Not gonna lie, I'm freaked out.  With a family this small, each member counts.  Having just lost my last grandparent literally like a week ago, the child in me feels like this is a time when we all ought to come closer, but instead, it feels as if everything's falling apart.  I'll be the first to admit I'm a drama queen, but when it comes to Christmas traditions, I hold on tight.  Now, I'm a little scared--like there's nothing left to hold on to.

On the flip side, all of my men are excited by this change-up in plans.  A new video game has them all held captive.  Skyrim--a sequel to Oblivion for you non-gamers--is a HUGE deal in the gaming world.  I have a copy for my PS3, but I've had deadline after deadline and it's sitting in a drawer unopened.  My guys have this new and--in their eyes--improved Christmas all planned out.  Open gifts as fast as humanly possible, cook feast, play Skyrim with said feast on laps while casting spells and slaying dragons.  No cleaning, no leisurely sitting around the fire cherishing each gift, no laughing at the dining room table, no cleaning or dressing up or using manners--just a full-fledged Man Fest they're promising me is going to be a great time.

Part of me is psyched about not cleaning, but another part is apprehensive, like if I let something as sacred as Christmas traditions slide, our family has a problem.  Every book I write is focused on the sanctity of family, but the one topic I've never dealt with is what happens to my fictional families once the kids grow up and start their own traditions.  Dealing with the transition from high school to college was tough enough, but this new kink in my world is a beast.  One I'm in no way ready to slay. 

I know Hannah will be with a huge, wonderful family having a ball.  Not sure what my parents will be doing.  I, however, will be surrounded by three of the best looking guys in the state, feasting on ham with all the trimmings, downing "magic" eggnog and embarking on a fantastic quest for gold and power.  All of which, now that I think about it, doesn't sound half bad!!

How about you?  Switching up your holiday traditions?

Harlequin Annual Christmas Open House

On Wednesday December 14th Harlequin will is once again sponsoring their Annual Christmas Open House where readers can chat with the authors from the various Harlequin lines.  Be sure to stop by www.harlequin.com for more information on the event and how to register for the chat rooms.

American Romance Authors, Ann Roth, Barbara White Daille, Jacqueline Diamond, Tina Leonard and Marin Thomas will be on hand to chat with readers or aspiring writers about everything and anything from holiday cookie recipes  to upcoming books and series for the line.  The authors will also be giving away copies of their books throughout the chat so please stop in and say "Hi".

www.Harlequin.com chat with American Romance Authors Wednesday December 14th from 7-8 pm (Eastern Standard Time)

Happy Holidays!

It's Party Time!

No doubt, at this time of year some of us attend catered soirees where waiters in black tuxes circulate trays of canapés and caviar among the gowned and bejeweled guests. Much as I'd enjoy those events, the parties I'm usually invited to are much simpler affairs, gatherings of friends or family or--best of all--both. Events where I'm typically asked to bring "a dish."

What to bring? Each year, I search my recipes for something a little different, a little “out of the box.” Which is a challenge since I’m not a fancy cook. A good one, perhaps, but I wouldn’t know a piping tool if it bit me. So forget anything that requires carving radishes into roses or creating them out of icing.

This year, I’ve chosen a spinach artichoke dish as my to-go selection. To be honest, it started out as an Emeril Legasse recipe, and you can’t go wrong with Le Bam! I have, however, played around with the ingredients a bit. His version called for Brie and marinated artichokes. My crowd prefers Swiss and skips the marinade. Whichever suits your fancy, serve with good chips and enjoy.

Leigh's Version of Kicked-Up Spinach Artichoke Dip

2 boxes frozen chopped spinach, thawed, rinsed and drained
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup finely chopped onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup flour
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 cup Swiss cheese, grated
1 cup extra sharp, white cheddar cheese, grated
2 14-ounce cans artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
4 strips of bacon, chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Green onions, sliced (optional)
Chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a 9-inch ovenproof serving dish with cooking oil. Set aside.

Fry the bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside.

Squeeze excess liquid from thawed spinach and drain well.

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until translucent. Add the garlic, salt, black pepper, cayenne and cook for another minute.

Sprinkle flour over onion mixture. Slowly add cream and milk, stirring constantly. Cook over medium heat while continuing to stir, for 2 to 3 minutes or until mixture is thick and creamy.

Remove from heat. Add the Swiss and Cheddar. Stir until melted.

Add spinach, and lemon juice. Stir.

Set 1 tablespoon of bacon side. Add the remaining bacon and artichoke hearts to the spinach/cheese mixture and stir well.

Pour into greased casserole. Top with Parmesan cheese, reserved bacon and, if desired, sliced green onions.

Bake about 15 minutes or until heated through.

Serve with chips.

ENOUGH

Is everyone in full holiday spirit? This time of the year life gets a little rushed and hectic. The planning, decorating, shopping, cooking, parties and on it goes. Sometimes it’s just too much. I’m always rushed to finish everything that I don’t take time to enjoy the moment. I have a poem on my desk that I cut out of the paper in 1999, the year I sold my first book. It’s very simple, a little sad, but says a lot. It was written by Jeremy Richard Frampton, one of the twelve who died in the tragic Texas A&M Bonfire collapse. The university is about ten miles from our house.

Enough
If I stare long enough
If I talk hard enough
If I touch soft enough
If I look good enough
If I love deep enough
Will I live long enough
To love life enough

I love this poem so I’ve decided to enjoy the holiday and my family because it’s time to say enough is enough. I plan not to agonize over gifts and drive myself crazy. And to keep everything simple. We’ll see how that goes. It’s really nice Mother Nature has decorated our yard. That’s even better. These are Texas Yaupon holly shrubs and the bright red berries are gorgeous. After the drought, I thought they wouldn’t make this year, but they did.

Are you ready for the holidays?

Wishing each of you the best holiday ever.
Linda
http://www.lindawarren.net/
The Texan’s Christmas – Dec ‘11

Fudgey Christmas Memories

I have to keep with the spirit of the season posts here, as today I'm baking cookies. I've been gathering new recipes and might stir up some rum balls for a change of pace. However, my family demands I make Chocolate Chip cookies, and people tell me they hope I give them some in tins. Which is strange because my "secret" recipe is the Nestle Toll House Cookies recipe on the bag of semi-sweet morself. LOL So everyone could make them, if they wanted to. The only thing I do that's not listed on the bag is put foil on my baking sheets (because I reuse the cookie sheets during the baking of a batch). Here's what I made for Santa last year. He didn't eat all of them, but he made a pretty big dent.

I like rolled cookies that are pretty shapes and have icing, but not sprinkles or sugar. Making them is a chore, however, even though I like to decorate the ones that turn out. There's something about rolled dough that challenges me. You can use your Valentine heart cookie cutter for Santa, just put heart tip at the top for his hat. For a few years, I made Linzer cookies, which are basically shortbread-like cookies with red raspberry preserves. Again, they're not easy--too much rolling and cutting and perfecting. I'm more the drop-from-a-spoon type. Maybe that says something about me in general, but I'm not going there. :)

Could be I'm missing the rolling-dough gene. My mom wasn't a cookie or pie baker, but she made moist cakes with frosting that would make your knees buckle and FUDGE to die for, just from the smell. I'd love to be able to make it like she did. But Mom cooks by experience, not by a recipe, so we may have lost this treat forever. She can't cook with anyone in the kitchen, nor can she cook when trying to write down what she's doing. This doesn't bode well for us, especially as Mom hasn't been able to make Fudge for a few years now. Since I don't have a grasp of what a "hard ball or soft ball stage" looks or feels like (or how a drop of fudge cooked to that stage reacts in a cup of water!), I tried to make fudge using a candy thermometer. No luck. I tried different measurements of liquid to attain a "messy but not sloppy" consistency. I kid you not! That's how much milk to add, according to Mom. Now you're getting an idea of what I'm up against. I won't even try to explain how you know when you've beat it enough, but it includes the words shiny and glossy (however, you only want one and the other is bad).

But even if we can't have the Fudge itself, my siblings and I will cherish the memories of buttering the dish, getting to eat the fudge off a beater or scrape the bottom of the saucepan, waiting for the fudge to set enough to eat that first cut bite, still warm, or cheerfully assuring Mom that the "bad" batch of spoon candy (when it didn't set up) was not really a disaster because it tasted so good. Same with the rock hard, chisel-a-chunk-free batches. That smell of rich, luscious fudge cooking on the stove--aaah, my mouth waters!--would bring us from wherever we were in the house.

So, no, I never missed home-made cookies when we had something a zillion times better. Fudge, cooked with love, by Mom. Thanks for the memories, Mom.

Is this peculiar to my family, or is there a food in your family that no one else can make or there's no written recipe for? Do y'all have any suggestions for me--perhaps a good recipe I should try?

Wishing y;all a happy holiday season, with warm fudge, warm times with loved ones, and warm memories for your future.

Megan Kelly
www.megankellybooks.com

Red Kettle History

In the midst of all your shopping, last-minute errands and trips to the grocery store as you prepare to celebrate Christmas, please remember those less fortunate in your communities.  Make the holiday special for someone in need by dropping a few coins into the Salvation Army Kettles outside your local grocery store or favorite big box retailer.  Dig between the sofa cushions, check beneath the seats in your car and ask your kids to spare a few pennies from their piggy banks…a little goes a long way!   

Here's a little history on those famous RedKettles.

In 1891, Salvation Army Captain Joseph McFee was distraught because so many poor individuals in San Francisco were going hungry. During the holiday season, he resolved to provide a free Christmas dinner for the destitute and poverty-stricken. He only had one major hurdle to overcome -- funding the project.

<><> <><> Where would the money come from, he wondered. He lay awake nights, worrying, thinking, praying about how he could find the funds to fulfill his commitment of feeding 1,000 of the city's poorest individuals on Christmas Day. As he pondered the issue, his thoughts drifted back to his sailor days in Liverpool, England. He remembered how at Stage Landing, where the boats came in, there was a large, iron kettle called "Simpson's Pot" into which passers-by tossed a coin or two to help the poor.

The next day Captain McFee placed a similar pot at the Oakland Ferry Landing at the foot of Market Street. Beside the pot, he placed a sign that read, "Keep the Pot Boiling." He soon had the money to see that the needy people were properly fed at Christmas.

Six years later, the kettle idea spread from the west coast to the Boston area. That year, the combined effort nationwide resulted in 150,000 Christmas dinners for the needy. In 1901, kettle contributions in New York City provided funds for the first mammoth sit-down dinner in Madison Square Garden, a custom that continued for many years. Today in the U.S., The Salvation Army assists more than four-and-a-half million people during the Thanksgiving and Christmas time periods.

Captain McFee's kettle idea launched a tradition that has spread not only throughout the United States, but all across the world. Kettles are now used in such distant lands as Korea, Japan, Chile and many European countries. Everywhere, public contributions to Salvation Army kettles enable the organization to continue its year-round efforts at helping those who would otherwise be forgotten.

Do you have a favorite charity you like to donate to during the holidays?

Marin Thomas

A Rodeo Man's Promise (Dec 2011)

Arizona Cowboy (Feb 2012)

www.marinthomas.com

All My Heroes are Cowboys

Nuts about the holidays! (recipes)

Looking for tasty snacks to have on hand when family and friends drop by?

Here are two easy make-ahead recipes to put out for your guests.

And if you package them in pretty glass jars, they also make great hostess gifts!

Spicy Almonds and Pecans

1 cup whole almonds, with skins on
1 cup pecans
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Toss all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until the nuts are coated with seasonings. Spread the mixture in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the baking sheet, let the nuts cool, and store in a tightly sealed jar for up to a week.

Curried Cashews

3 cups roasted cashews, unsalted
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons coarse salt
2 tablespoons curry powder
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Toss all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until the nuts are coated with seasonings. Spread the mixture in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the baking sheet, let the nuts cool, and store in a tightly sealed jar for up to a week.

The preparation instructions are pretty much the same but temperatures and times are different, so they have to be roasted separately.

Happy holidays!

Until next time,
Lee
http://www.leemckenzie.com/
The Christmas Secret (Nov. ‘11)
The Daddy Project (TBA)
Daddy, Unexpectedly (TBA)

NOVEMBER WINNER!!!!

CONGRATULATIONS Marcie! You’re the November winner. To receive your free autographed books please contact Lee McKenzie, Shelley Galloway and Julie Benson through their Web sites.

To enter the contest simply leave a blog comment and your name will go into the drawing. Simple and painless. And FREE BOOKS.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!